Hwang Jung-Min 황정민 [Upcoming Movies: “12.12: The Day”, “Mission Cross”, “Veteran 2”, “Hope”]

[Guest kiye]

one of my favorite actors. truly amazing. ^^ can't wait to see happiness. a definite gem in the acting world~

[rubie]

^ Hi mikaney., welcome to Hwang Jung Min's & thanks to Huangsy for the pics.

HJM is one busy actor.. just after Black House earlier on, Happiness is set to open next month.. a new movie is already in the works. A superman, indeed!

---

September 27, 2007

Jeon Ji-hyun Set to Return to the Local Big Screen

http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/6080/070927ent1jj5.jpg

Actress Jeon Ji-hyun is set to make her big screen comeback by starring in director Chung Yun-chul's new film 'He Once Was a Superman.'

The film's production and distribution company CJ Entertainment said in a recent press release that actress Jeon Ji-hyun and Hwang Jung-min will star in 'He Once Was a Superman.'

The film, slated to open in the first half of 2008, is the comic and heartwarming story of an eccentric who believes that he is a super hero.

Jeon will take on the role of Song Su-jeong, a documentary producer who will resort to all lengths, even manipulation, to create a program that will move the hearts of TV viewers. In the film, she uses "Superman" to make a human documentary.

The actress recently finished shooting a film entitled "Blood: The Last Vampire" based on a Japanese animation.

Source: KBS Global

http://english.kbs.co.kr/entertainment/new...0563_11858.html

[rubie]

September 27, 2007

'Happiness' Measures Cost of Love

By Lee Hyo-won

Staff Reporter

Love is pain, they say, and countless songs and stories croon about it time over time. Melodrama maestro Hur Jin-ho ("One Fine Spring Day," 2001, "April Snow," 2005) does not disappoint in depicting love's fleeting pleasures and lasting sting with poignant tenderness in his fourth romance "Happiness."

Things can't get any worse for Yeong-jae (Hwang Jung-min), a heavy drinking, chain-smoking playboy: His nightclub goes bankrupt, his girlfriend deserts him and he might die from cirrhosis (point of interest: the club scene was shot in Apgujeong NB, which also closed its doors not too long ago).

He packs up everything and retreats to a rehabilitation center in the middle of nowhere, where he meets the most unexpected: true love. Eun-hi (Lim Soo-jung) suffers from fatally weak lungs, but despite her frail appearance she is stouthearted and takes care of the other patients. Yeong-jae and Eun-hi fall madly in love and move into a small house in the countryside. Each moment is filled with peace and Yeong-jae discovers a sweetness and profundity to life he never knew before.

Yet, "for each ecstatic instant we must an anguish pay in keen and quivering ration to the ecstasy," as Emily Dickinson wrote: As Yeong-jae regains his strength, he grows bored with country life and feels suffocated by Eun-hi's devotion. Tempted by his friends and ex-girlfriend to return to the city, he leaves the woman that saved his life.

"Before, I couldn't live without you, but now, you're driving me crazy," he tells her bitterly.

Actor Hwang Jung-min completely casts off his much-loved image as a passionately devoted husband in "You are My Sunshine" (2005) as he trades in his boorish farmer clothes and potbelly for a dangerously sexy, chic urban look complete with a six-pack.

Although the film publicizes Hwang's deterioration into a bad guy, his character, though contemptible at times, is far from being completely loathsome like Jonathan Rhys Meyers in Woody Allen's "Match Point" (2005) or Cho Jae-hyun in Kim Ki-deok's "Bad Guy" (2001).

"Happiness" is essentially a love story, but, at large, a realistic sketch of the human condition and a testimony of modern man's dilemma. Weak-willed and lacking self-restraint, Yeong-jae is simply ordinary -- an antihero with completely normal, human flaws. You actually feel sympathetic for the guy who falls prey to the dark seductions of our oversexed, consumption-driven society.

The film is almost biblical in the sense that Eun-hi creates the prefect Garden of Eden for Yeong-jae, who is doomed to escape only to meet his downfall.

Even Su-yeon (Kong Hyo-jin), who leaves her dying boyfriend but later wants him back when he is recovered and with another woman, speaks to the no-strings-attached romance of our generation.

Lim Soo-jung personifies her character with such tenderness that you can never imagine anyone else playing the part. Compared with her previous role as a dying schoolgirl in "...ing" (2003), the baby-faced actress makes a big step toward full-fledged "womanhood," and the snippet of the film's love scene in its preview created quite a stir here.

Eun-hi is made of beauty in all its possible forms, with the tenderness of a guardian angel, devotion of a mother and the fervor of a passionate lover. Her almost too perfect character could have stopped short of being allegorical at best, but she becomes instantly terrestrial thanks to minute details that make all the difference. Any woman would be able relate to discreetly checking out one's face in front of the man she pretends not to fancy.

"Happiness" is a memorable film that strikes both sense and sensibility -- leaving you to ruminate the nature of love while leaving a resonating vibe in your heart.

Coming to theaters Oct.3.

Credits: hyowlee@koreatimes.co.kr

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/art/2.../141_10863.html

[rubie]

September 27, 2007

Jun Ji-hyun to Star in New Film With Hwang Jung-min

By Lee Hyo-won

Staff Reporter

http://img474.imageshack.us/img474/3615/junjihyunmj9.jpg

Actress Jun Ji-hyun

After wrapping up her Hollywood debut film, hallyu princess Jun Ji-hyun will star in "Superman Ieotdeon Sanai" (The Guy Who Was Once Superman) with award-winning actor Hwang Jung-min ("You Are My Sunshine," 2005), according to CJ Entertainment.

Also known as Gianna Jeon, the heroine of "My Sassy Girl" (2001) will play the role of a small production company head who tries, using coercive measures, to document the life of a heartless Superman (Hwang).

"The unique script was very appealing and I am looking forward to working with Hwang Jung-min," she was quoted as saying according to CJ Entertainment.

Following her last Korean film "Daisy" (2006), Jun was in the United States for her role in "Blood: The Last Vampire," a post-World War II horror story based on a Japanese comic series and co-produced by Korea. The movie awaits release next year.

"Superman" traces the adventures of a Don Quixote-like man who tries to help out a neighbor. Directed by Chung Yun-su, maker of warm family movies like "Marathon" (2005), the film is scheduled to go into production this fall for release early next year.

Credits: hyowlee@koreatimes.co.kr

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/speci.../178_10872.html

[rubie]

September 28, 2007

Actress Jeon Ji-hyun Making Korean Comeback

Jeon Ji-hyun has returned to act in Korea. With a leading role in the new movie "A Man Once A Superman" to be directed by Jeong Yoon-cheol, Jeon returns to Chungmuro, Korea's Hollywood, after a long absence.

Korean audiences last saw Jeon in last year's "Daisy," but that movie was made by Hong Kong's Andrew Lau, director of "Infernal Affairs", and shot in Amsterdam. After working on that she took the lead in the international film "Blood: The Last Vampire" in an attempt to break into Hollywood. It has been three years since her last Korean movie, "Windstruck" in 2004.

In the new movie Jeon will appear alongside Korean actor Hwang Jeong-min. She will take on the role of Song Su-jeong, a snobbish producer who makes a documentary about the extraordinary behavior of her neighbor (played by Hwang) who believes himself to be Superman.

"Any actresses would be eager for the script and the part. Above all, I'm looking forward to acting with Hwang Jeong-min," she said. "This role is the most realistic and alive of all the parts I've had so far." The movie will start shooting at the end of this month in Jeonju and be released in the first half of next year.

Source: englishnews@chosun.com

http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/new...0709280008.html

[Guest huangsy]

on cover of Film 2.0 mag

[rubie]

Sharing this lovely article on ISJ and her chemistry with HJM. Happiness is really doing well, too!

---

October 10, 2007

A girl needs heartbreak to be a woman

Actress Lim Su-jung, 27, has decided it’s time

she started to act her age. By Kang Jung-hyun

Perhaps Lim Su-jung has bid farewell to her girl years. It’s a disappointment, but the 27-year-old actress has made her choice. Now in her late 20s, she is only doing what is natural.

“Happiness” is a film about a young woman who falls in love with a bad boy (Hwang Jung-min) she meets in a rural nursing home. It’s a coming-of-age ritual for Lim. In the movie one of her lines is, “I am older than I look.”

“After starring in a movie about love between adults, rather than between teenagers,” Lim said, “I feel like I’ve grown up, like I’ve married someone.”

With a baby face on a petite frame, Lim has always taken the roles of precocious girls who suffer early tragedies.

In the hit KBS drama “Sorry, I Love You,” she fell in love with an adoptee; in the film “Ing,” she was a terminally ill high school girl who accepted her imminent death with grace.

But Lim has never been an object of sexual desire for older men. Some of her characters even had the power to heal, such as the 30-kilogram (66-pound) anorexic girl in “I’m a Cyborg, But That’s OK.”

Lim was such a perfect fit for the role that the award-winning director Park Chan-wook was amazed.

Happiness, which opened a week ago, is the latest film by Huh Jin-ho, who has previously worked with the hottest actresses of the day, such as Shim Eun-ha (“Christmas in August”) or Lee Young-ae (“One Fine Spring Day”).

Whereas Lee asks her man if he’d like to stay for a bowl of instant noodles, Lim’s character, suffering from a lung disease, wonders if the man would like to live with her. Of course, the love fades away, and the lovers suffer.

“It seems like I’ve just closed the first chapter of my acting career,” Lim said. Beneath her girl-next-door looks lay a strong seam of tenacity and perseverance.

Lim said the filming of Happiness began a week after she finished working on Cyborg. She admitted that she struggled to make the adjustment from the devil-may-care Young-goon character in Cyborg to become the Eun-hee character in Happiness, a much more complicated persona who makes sacrifices for her lover.

Also, she had to adjust to the contrasting styles of the directors: Park Chan-uk in Cyborg was a master at planning ahead, whereas Huh tended to improvise.

“I felt Eun-hee only had a small part in the movie,” Lim said. “But that only motivated me to tackle this role. It wasn’t easy, but once I relaxed, I had the character down.

“I was fairly content after finishing one film, and then the Eun-hee character emerged as another obstacle,” she continued. “That’s why acting is always so challenging. Every role brings out something in me that I didn’t know existed.”

Lim has mostly played young girls in TV dramas and films, and she said it is about time her roles reflected her real age.

“I wanted to be in Happiness because I could project my real sensibilities as a woman in her late 20s,” Lim said. “I couldn’t keep playing a teenage girl forever.”

However, she might have seemed like a girl to her co-star Hwang, who is 10 years her senior. Lim said she’d always wanted to work with Hwang, adding, “His mere presence was an inspiration. In the latter stage of the film, I had tears in my eyes, just looking at him.”

She likely needed all the inspiration she could get during the making of Happiness.

Director Huh left the ending scene wide open, just telling his stars to “sit down and look at each other.”

“He worked with the actors on the spot to add dialogue and other details,” Lim said of her director. “We would do 15, 20 takes for each cut. It was tiring, but as an actor, it was a great opportunity to think through each scene.”

After three films in a year (“Lump of Sugar,” about a girl’s love for horse riding, was the third), Lim said she wants to take a breather, hoping to take on “more outside-the-box” roles in the future.

“With my first chapter closed, I wonder what the next chapter will be like,” Lim said. “As far as acting is concerned, I’d like to be true to myself, and do things my way.

“I want to create a ‘Lim Su-jung’ style. Is that too much of a pipe dream?”

By Yang Sung-hee JoongAng Ilbo [jeeho@joongang.co.kr]

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2881297

[rubie]

October 16, 2007

Actor Hwang Jung-min Returns to Stage

By Chung Ah-young

Staff Reporter

Actor Hwang Jung-min,

who recently starred in the movie“ Happiness,”

is returning to his beginnings--the musical stage.

Movie star and talented musical actor Hwang Jung-min will return to the stage next year, four years after his last musical, "42nd Street."

He is a household name on the big screen with successful performances in "You Are My Sunshine," (2005) "Psychopath," (2007) and "Happiness" (2007).

But the award-winning performer first began his acting career as a musical actor in "Line 1" (1995) and then starred in various musicals such as "Jesus Christ Superstar" and "Cats."

"I am very excited (to come back to the musical.) With 'Nine' as my comeback piece, I will do my best," he said in a press release.

Based on an Italian play by Mario Fratti inspired by Federico Fellini's autobiographical film "8½," it focuses on the film director Guido Contini, which will be played by Hwang.

The musical deals with the famous director's approaching fortieth birthday, which thrusts him into an emotional tailspin that threatens to destroy his personal and professional life.

The role of Guido Contini is the only male cast member among 18 women.

With Hollywood star Antonio Banderas, as well as a number of other key players, performing in 2003's Broadway revival of "Nine", much of its reputation can attributed to Banderas, whose acting and singing talent along with his good looks made for an ideal Guido Contini.

Now the Korean production is placing much expectation on Hwang, who shines in films with his captivating acting.

Starring in various musicals and plays in Daehangno, Hwang's debut film was "The Waikiki Brothers," in 2001. Then he appeared in prominent films like "A Good Lawyer's Wife," "You're My Sunshine," and "Bloody Tie," in which he portrayed many diverse characters.

The Korean production will be directed by veteran director David Swan who worked in several Korean hit productions such as "Man of La Mancha" and "All Shook Up."

"Nine" premiered in 1982 on Broadway and was nominated in 10 sections of Tony Awards and won five awards, including the best revival award.

The musical will be staged at LG Arts Center in southern Seoul on Jan. 22 and will run until March 2 next year.

Tickets cost from 30,000 won to 120,000 won. For more information, call 1588-5212.

Credits: chungay@koreatimes.co.kr

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/art/2.../145_11969.html

[rubie]

B.O. update & excerpts from Korea Pop Wars, thanks to Mark Russell

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Korea Weekend Box Office - Oct. 12-14

(and Oct. 5-7, too)

At long last, Hur Jin-ho lands on the top of the box office. Not just once, but two weeks in a row, with his latest melodrama HAPPINESS. Sure, 967,000 admissions in 10 days is not so impressive, but HAPPINESS has made Hur quite happy anyway because he has never led the box office in Korea before. Good for him. And good for Zip Cine, the company that produced the movie.

This Week Title........ Release Date * Screens Nationwide * Weekend Attendance * Total Attendance

1. Happiness (Haengbok - Korean) 10.03 * 341 * 217,117 * 967,790

2. Rush Hour 3 10.03 270 167,384 621,617

3. Nanny Diaries 10.03 229 98,177 405,779

4. Love (Sarang - Korean) 9.20 263 97,350 1,966,448

5. Becoming Jane 10.11 238 88,135 104,719

6. Copying Beethoven 10.11 165 86,527 99,366

7. Brave One 10.11 169 81,014 95,473

8. Shoot 'Em Up 10.11 172 55,947 66,932

9. The Happy Life (Jeulgeoun Insaeng - Korean) 9.12 149 52,994 1,177,938

10. Bourne Ultimatum 9.12 199 49,801 1,976,069

(Source: KOBIS - Figures represent 94% of nationwide box office)

Last Week's Box Office (Oct. 5-7)

1. Happiness (Korean) - 322,400 - 583,565

2. Rush Hour 3 - 211,069 - 354,381

3. Love (Korean) - 143,991 - 1,770,649

4. The Nanny Diaries - 139,852 - 238,029

5. The Bourne Ultimatum - 98,780 - 1,878,427

6. The Happy Life (Korean) - 77,188 - 1,084,124

7. Kidnapping Granny K (Korean) - 58,219 - 1,458,958

8. Crank - 39,171 - 68,027

9. The Mafia, The Salesman (Korean) - 31,982 - 867,188

10. Invasion - 23,316 - 544,173

Source: http://koreapopwars.blogspot.com/2007/10/k...-12-14-and.html

[rubie]

October 17, 2007

Actor Hwang Jung-min returns to musical stage with 'Nine'

Hwang Jung-min, the award-winning actor who exhibited his versatility in his recent film, "Happiness," returns to musical stage early next year after a four-year hiatus.

The OD Musical Company, one of local musical productions in Korea, said that Hwang will take the role of Guido Contini, a film director facing a midlife crisis, in the Korean adaptation of the Broadway musical, "Nine."

The musical will hit the stage on Jan. 22 for a seven-week run at the LG Arts Center in Yeoksam-dong, southern Seoul.

Based on an Italian play by Mario Fratti which was inspired by Federico Fellini's autobiographical film "8 1/2," the musical tells a story of a 40-year-old man entangled in a web of romantic difficulties in early-1960s Venice.

The Broadway production, directed by Tommy Tune and choreographed by Tommie Walsh, opened in May 1982. It eventually won five Tony Awards, including for best musical of the year.

In 2003, the remake of the musical, which starred Antonio Banderas as Guido, hit the stage. The performance earned him a Tony Award nomination.

Hwang is to lead a cast of more than a dozen women in the Korean production of "Nine;" perhaps he hopes to be like Banderas, who mesmerized the audience with his major "Italian charm" four years ago in New York.

In this story, the women in the Italian director's life include his wife, mistress, leading lady, mother, first sexual encounter, and producer. They swarm around the once-lauded director as he attempts to revive his career and get some inspiration by escaping to a Venetian spa.

Hwang, according to the OD Musical Company, was fascinated by the performance of Banderas during the Tony Awards which he saw on TV, and that motivated him to play the role of a struggling film director.

"I feel really thrilled and excited. I will do my best because this is the musical I really wanted to do," said Hwang through the musical production company.

He has often been commenting on his return to musical stage: "I want to give a stimulus to my acting career by returning to the musical stage, a place that feels like home."

Before his movie career, Hwang was known as stage actor who performed in a number of dramas and musical productions. The 37-year-old actor debuted in the drama called "Subway Line 1," a long-running hit musical which produced a number of top actors like Seol Kyung-gu ("Oasis") and Cho Seung-woo ("Tazza"). The actor also performed in several musicals before gaining recognition as 'versatile movie actor.' The musicals he has played in include "Broadway 42nd" (2004), "Jesus Christ Superstar" (1997), and "Cats" (1999).

By Cho Chung-un (christory@heraldm.com), image from empas.com

Source: http://www.koreaherald.co.kr

[rubie]

Hwang Jung Min - NINE

Article at http://www.movist.com/article/read.asp?type=13&id=14480

[rubie]

02-15-2006 (Last year's Screen Quota Cut Protest Rally)

Source: http://www.mydaily.co.kr/news/read.html?ne...602151330551120

[rubie]

Thanks to the highlight at The Man Once a Superman thread lotsa hilarious HJM caps! The movie filming is currently ongoing & making heads turn!

http://www.soompi.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=168495

[rubie]

Thanks to Shirley at the 28th Blue Dragon Awards thread

The 28th Blue Dragon Film Awards, 23 November 2007

http://www.soompi.com/forums/index.php?sho...76831&st=20

Although HJM didn't win the Best Actor award, he's one of the winners for the Popularity Award & Happiness bagged a Best Director recognition!

CONGRATULATIONS!

Popularity Award

Kim Ah Jung , Joo Jin Mo

Kim Tae Hee , Hwang Jung Min

Captures from newsen.com

[Guest huangsy]

Photos from Man Once a Superman movie :

[rubie]

^ Wahh! Hope they're not scared of heights!

Does this mean that "the man once a superman" indeed has the superman power?

Hahaa.. HJM's green shirt is such a distraction!

Thanks Huangsy for these awesome movie caps, appreciate them!

[Guest huangsy]

superman's flying power created by film production's line wire ?

[rubie]

superman's flying power created by film production's line wire ?

If I'm not mistaken.. I think that's how "flying" scenes were created.

I just thought that HJM's character in the movie is someone's delusional.. who thinks that he could fly. So.. I'm not sure if they'll actually fly or float or something. The line-wire against a blue backdrop wouldn't be visible onscreen, right.. if that's the effect that they're trying to achieve. :blush:

[rubie]

A little update on HJM's co-star & current movie-project ^^

S. Korean actress Jeon Ji-hyun

Nov. 28, PAJU, South Korea -- Popular South Korean actress Jeon Ji-hyun speaks at a press conference about the new film, "A Man Once A Superman," in which she stars with actor Hwang Jeong-min, at a studio in the city of Paju on Nov. 28. (Yonhap) (END)

Source: http://app.yonhapnews.co.kr/YNA/basic/Arti...ePhotoMain.aspx

[rubie]

November 28, 2007

Source: http://spn.edaily.co.kr/entertain/newsRead...mp;curtype=read